7-Way Crab Joint

ABSTRACT

An apparatus and method for interconnecting mains cables used for underground secondary low-voltage AC network systems utilizing an improved crab joint connector arranged to maximize the number of interconnections in a compact design wherein the plurality of legs are arranged in a rectangle configuration and a single bus leg is positioned at an end of an insulated housing.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.13/744,337, filed on Jan. 17, 2013, now U.S. Pat. No. 9,048,638, issuedJun. 2, 2015, and the foregoing application is herein incorporated byreference in its entirety.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to an apparatus for interconnecting mainscables used for underground secondary low-voltage AC network systems.More particularly, the invention relates to an improved crab jointconnector arranged to maximize the number of interconnections in acompact design.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Electrical distribution networks are critical for the delivery ofelectricity to consumers and businesses from the transmission system.Such a network can include power lines, substations, transformers, andmeters that are interconnected by thousands of miles of cables. Indensely populated urban areas, electricity is transmitted to consumersvia secondary low-voltage AC network systems which are formed by feedingseveral transformers into a common bus. A secondary low-voltage ACnetwork system is generally characterized as a system wherein customersare served from three-phase, four-wire low-voltage circuits supplied bytwo or more network transformers whose low-voltage terminals areconnected to the low-voltage circuits through network protectors. Thesecondary network system has two or more high-voltage primary feeders,with each primary feeder typically supplying 1-30 network transformers,depending on network size and design. Such systems include automaticprotective devices intended to isolate faulted primary feeders, networktransformers, or low-voltage cable sections while maintaining service tothe customers served from the low-voltage circuits. While secondarylow-voltage AC network distribution connections as discussed herein aretypically housed in an above-ground cabinet or a below-ground box, it isgenerally preferred that these secondary networks are locatedunderground, due to the impracticability of using overhead wires indensely populated urban areas. As a result, the connections may besubjected to moisture and may even become submerged in water. If thecable conductors or conductor members of the bus bars are left exposed,water and environmental contaminants may cause short circuit failureand/or corrosion thereon. In addition, as an urban area grows, theprocess of connecting additional customers to the secondary networkinvolves the costly procedure of excavating and splicing connections tothe common bus. Such problems of expansion have not been entirelyignored by the industry.

It is believed that since about 1935, crab joints have been used forreducing the time associated with interconnecting mains cables used inunderground secondary low-voltage AC network systems. A crab jointbasically includes a central hub (often referred to as a “busbar”) withmultiple fusible connections (referred to as “limiters”) to a number ofcables constituting part of a network. The limiters act to protect thecables connected to the crab joint in case of a failure of any of thecables in the network. A typical crab joint consists of a plurality ofcable connectors, also known as legs, electrically connected to a commonjunction plate. The connectors are arranged such that a plurality oflegs surround a center leg as shown in FIG. 1A (PRIOR ART). The centermember is connected to other electrical components, such as another crabjoint, while the surrounding legs are connected to a continuation of thecables for “network mains” or feeding customers. More specifically, FIG.1A depicts the typical arrangement wherein a center connector 100 issurrounded by a plurality of connectors 102. Connector 102 is typicallya fusible connector, while connector 100 is non-fusible and connected toother accessories, such as another crab joint. The crab joint greatlyreduces the labor associated with splicing cables and improvesreliability because the linesperson simply connects a prepared cable toan available connector, instead of preparing multiple cables forsplicing. This achieves the requirement to connect a number of cables toone geometric point (in electrical terms).

The conventional crab joint generally used in secondary low-voltage ACnetwork systems comprises compression connectors with EPDM rubber sealsto connect network cables to the busbar. In older prior art joints, thelimiter elements could not be individually replaced and in earlyconventional crab joint design, a failed or blown limiter was notreadily discernible from the exterior of the crab joint. Of course, suchconstruction made it very difficult to visually detect an opened limiterin a crab joint. As a result, opened limiters often existed undetectedfor long durations resulting in low voltage in the serviced area oroverloading of a network transformer. Repairs of such problems requiredexcessive work by “troubleshooting crews” tasked with testing andinspecting substantial lengths of cable runs and related componentswithout an easy solution for troubleshooting failure.

While there have been several improvements to the crab joint, such asmaterial improvements, fault identifiers, and the like, the arrangementof the connectors has remained largely unchanged since the originaldevelopment of crab joints over seventy years ago. One major developmentin the field of secondary voltage systems was the introduction offusible connectors; however, crab joint configuration design stillgenerally remained the same. Fusible connectors were designed inresponse to one or more mains in a crab joint experiencing excessivecurrents due to a short circuit. The short circuit fault caused theconnector of a crab joint to overheat and eventually destroy itself.This destruction could subsequently damage the surrounding connectorsand mains cables that may not have been experiencing the fault current.As a result, a short circuit fault could bring down power to allcustomers connected to the crab joint. A limiter, such as a fuse, istypically located between the mains connection and junction plate—whereall the mains connectors are electrically connected together. Thelimiter is designed to disconnect the main experiencing the faultcondition, just before the heat from the short circuit current damagesthe other mains connected to the crab joint.

One primary reason that crab joint design has not departed from theoriginal design conceived over seventy years ago is that current crabjoint designs simply work for the intended purpose. As referenced, evenwith the addition of the fusible connectors, crab joints have beenmodestly modified and maintained the same arrangement for theconnectors. In fact, the addition of these limiters has reinforced theexistence of the current design, as the minimum distance betweenconnectors must be such that it impedes a blown limiter from damagingother connectors. Thus, rather than minimizing the distance between crabjoint connectors, a current trend of crab joint designs focuses onimproving fusible connectors to exist in the environment of existingcrab joints. For example, Mofatt U.S. Pat. No. 7,358,845 entitled “CableLimiter and Crab Limiter Employing Replaceable Fusible Element” isdirected to the improved fusible connectors and references various otherinventions relating to improving fuses which are designed to becompatible with crab joint systems. FIG. 1B depicts a crab joint knownin the art which is integral to the operation of the improved design offusible connectors of Mofatt. As shown, the connectors are arrangedsimilar such that a center connector 104 is surrounded between aplurality of connectors 106. It is readily apparent in the Moffatdisclosure that the crab joints known in the art are of the typicaldesign disclosed in FIG. 1A wherein the ring bus leg is disposed in thecenter of the arrangement. In the Mofatt design, when a fusibleconnector fails, only the failed fuse needs to be replaced instead ofthe whole crab joint. While Mofatt teaches the inclusion of anannunciator on the fusible connector to indicate the status of thefusible element (wherein the annunciator can either be an auditorysignal or wireless communication in order to facilitate personnel infinding and replacing blown fuses), the invention of Mofatt is designedto be compatible with the connectors in the traditional crab jointformation currently known in the art.

Even when inventions in the field of crab joints result in theadjustment of the configuration of crab joints, the change is minimaland is generally for purposes other than compactness. In one example ofmodified crab joint design (U.S. Pat. No. 8,129,618 entitled “CableJoint,” issued to Bier), the location of the center connector is offset.According to the patent, this modification was primarily to facilitate aU-shape which was designed to allow personnel to easily view andvisually identify a blown fuse without having to move the location ofconnected components. This modified design is shown in FIG. 1C (PRIORART). Specifically FIG. 1C depicts a preferred embodiment of Bier, whichteaches a seven way crab joint with an improved design including avisual indicator for determining whether or not a corresponding limiteris blown. Center connector 108 is positioned between a plurality ofconnectors 110, but is offset from a central position of the crab joint.As mentioned, the purpose of the change of the location of the centerconnector was to facilitate personnel easily looking down andidentifying a blown fuse, rather than for the purpose of providing acompact design which eliminates material and space requirements when inuse.

While FIG. 1C discloses the improved seven-way crab joint of Bier U.S.Pat. No. 8,129,618 entitled “Cable Joint,” a simpler seven-way design ispresented in FIG. 1D. Specifically, FIG. 1D illustrates an arrangementthat adapts the arrangement in FIG. 1A, but for a seven way crab joint.Similar to the arrangement in FIG. 1A, a center connector 112 issurrounded by connectors 114.

It is well known in the art that space allocation in electricalcomponent cabinets and underground systems is a primary concern,especially as more power is necessary to support residential andcommercial areas in growing metropolitan cities. The facilities for thecomponents of secondary low-voltage AC network systems is generally notexpanding in proportion to the demand, and as a result, the componentsthemselves need to change. Thus, there is an apparent need in the artfor components of reduced size. However, merely altering the size of thecomponents is not always an easy solution. In particular, crab jointsmust be designed of sufficient size, shape, and material so that thecrab joint can handle the substantial voltage without significantlyimpeding current flow, can be easily repaired, can be compatible withexisting systems, and most importantly can handle surges and potentialdamage from blown fuses. So while there exists an apparent need for acompact crab joint design, no known developments have resulted in animproved design that meets the objectives required to operate in thecomplex environment of secondary low-voltage AC network systems.

SUMMARY

Various embodiments of the present invention involve a compact crabjoint connector. In the preferred embodiment, the crab joint connectoris a seven-way crab joint connector. The crab joint of the presentinvention is directed to a multiple cable connection wherein the mainscables are, through the use of the crab joint, electricallyinterconnected and may be joined to auxiliary or service cables, andwherein each connection of a cable terminal through the joint isseparably and independently protected by a limiter section. The primaryobject of the present invention is to allow for the plurality of cablesto be electrically connected through the use of a single unitary elementwith at least some of the cable lengths protected within the unitaryelement by a limiter or fuse component in a substantially reduced space.In the event that a fault develops in one or more of the connectedcables, the limiter or fuse component will blow and open the cablecircuit thereby interrupting the flow of the electrical current beforethe faulted circuit is allowed to create substantial damage to therespective cable insulation. Of primary concern is that the crab jointis designed so that a single short in one of the cables does not causesubstantial damage to the other connected cables. One of ordinary skillin the art will readily recognize that it is of utmost importance thatthe crab joint of the present invention is designed so that any fault inthe cables connected to the unitary joint does not result in theinterruption of the electrical continuity of the serviced facility forthe crab joint.

The development of a compact crab joint is necessary in the art for amyriad of reasons. First, the compact crab joint of the presentinvention is designed to reduce the time necessary for installation ormaintenance. This benefit over existing joints is the result of thecompact design as less material is required to be excavated to install anew crab joint in an underground environment and less space is requiredin an aboveground installation. Furthermore, in pre-existing undergroundstructures, a compact crab joint allows more crab joints to be installedbefore requiring the costly construction of an enlarged structure. Whilethe space limitation is the primary benefit of the compact crab joint ofthe present invention (primarily as a result of the repositioning of thering bus leg), the present invention also allows for improved operationand maintenance as the ring bus leg is better located in the rear of thejoint allowing unobstructed access to limiter legs.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a crab joint capablefor use in a secondary low-voltage AC network system. In one embodimentof the present invention, a crab joint is disclosed including aninsulated housing with a plurality of integrally molded legs. In thepresent example, the crab joint has a plurality of legs extending from afirst end of the housing and a plurality of legs extending from a secondend of the housing. A pigtail (short cable length) is attached to eachleg wherein the pigtail allows a linesperson to easily attach acable-to-cable butt splice to the crab joint. The legs extending fromthe joint are electrically connected at a junction plate located in anintermediate section of the housing, and a limiter, known in the art, ispositioned between the leg and the junction plate. At least one ring busleg is included on each end of the housing for the purpose of connectingto another electrical apparatus, such as another crab joint. The ringbus leg is electrically connected to the junction plate, and a pigtailis also attached to the ring bus leg in order to improve the ease ofinstalling a prepared cable to the crab joint.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

A further understanding of the present invention and the objectivesother than those set forth above can be obtained by reference to thevarious implementations set forth in the illustrations of theaccompanying figures. Although the illustrated implementationsillustrate certain aspects of the present invention, the apparatus andmethod of use of the invention, in general, together with furtherobjectives and advantages thereof, may be more easily understood byreference to the drawings, examples, and the following description. Theexamples and figures are not intended to limit the scope of thisinvention, which is set forth with particularity in the claims asappended or as subsequently amended, but merely to clarify and exemplifythe invention. The detailed description makes reference to theaccompanying figures wherein:

FIGS. 1A (PRIOR ART), 1B (PRIOR ART), 1C (PRIOR ART), and 1D (PRIOR ART)depict typical arrangements of crab joint connectors.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of an exemplary seven-way crab joint of thepresent invention.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the preferred embodiment of the presentinvention depicting an exemplary seven-way crab joint.

FIG. 4 is a side view of the crab joint installation of the preferredembodiment of an exemplary seven-way crab joint of FIG. 2, composed of aseries of racked crab joints 200.

FIG. 5 is a side view of the preferred embodiment of the presentinvention depicting an exemplary seven-way crab joint.

FIG. 6 is a top view of the preferred embodiment of the presentinvention depicting an exemplary seven-way crab joint.

FIG. 7 is a front view of the crab joint installation of the preferredembodiment of the present invention depicting an exemplary seven-waycrab joint in a vertical racked environment, comprising a series ofracked crab joints as generally depicted in FIG. 2.

FIG. 8A and FIG. 8B are cut-away views of the various componentsutilized to construct an existing crab joint (FIG. 8A) and thelow-profile crab joint (FIG. 8B) claimed in the present invention.

FIG. 9A and FIG. 9B are side views of an existing crab joint (FIG. 9A)and the low-profile crab joint (FIG. 8B) claimed in the presentinvention.

FIG. 10A and FIG. 10B are side views of an existing crab joint (FIG.10A) and the low-profile crab joint (FIG. 10B) claimed in the presentinvention in a racked environment.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

A detailed description of the various embodiments of the presentinvention is disclosed herein. However, techniques of manufacture andresulting structures in accordance with the present invention may beembodied in a wide variety of forms and modes, some of which may bequite different from those in the disclosed embodiments. Consequently,the specific structural details disclosed herein are merelyrepresentative, yet in that regard, they are deemed to representsuitable implementations for purposes of disclosure and to provide abasis for the claims herein, which define the scope of the presentinvention. Well known methods, procedures, and substances for bothcarrying out the objectives of the present invention and illustratingthe preferred embodiment are incorporated herein but have not beendescribed in detail as to not unnecessarily obscure novel aspects of thepresent invention.

Unless the context clearly requires otherwise, throughout thedescription and the claims, the words “comprise,” “comprising,” and thelike are to be construed in an inclusive sense, as opposed to anexclusive or exhaustive sense; that is to say, in the sense of“including, but not limited to.” As used herein, the terms “connected,”“coupled,” or any variant thereof, means any connection or coupling,either direct or indirect, electronic or otherwise, between two or moreelements; the coupling or connection between the elements can bephysical, logical, or a combination thereof. Additionally, the words“herein,” “above,” “below,” and words of similar import, when used inthis application, shall refer to this application as a whole and not toany particular portions of this application. Where the context permits,words in the Detailed Description of the Preferred Embodiment using thesingular or plural number may also include the plural or singular numberrespectively. The word “or,” in reference to a list of two or moreitems, covers all of the following interpretations of the word: any ofthe items in the list, all of the items in the list, and any combinationof the items in the list.

In accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the present invention asshown in FIG. 2 through FIG. 5, a crab joint installation 214 iscomposed of a series of racked crab joints 200 placed in a verticalarrangement. The crab joint installation 214 is depicted in a commonrack system 216 which is generally utilized in an undergroundinstallation. As depicted in the crab joint installation 214, threeseven-way crab joints 200 are shown allowed for the installation of atotal of six ring bus legs and eighteen standard legs. The insulatedhousing 202 is shown with a plurality of integrally molded legs 210. Inthe present example, crab joint 200 has six legs 210 extending from afirst end 204 of housing 202 and six legs 210 extending from a secondend 206 of housing 200. While a seven-way design is depicted (i.e., sixlegs and one ring bus leg), one of ordinary skill in the art willreadily recognize that the same design structure could be employed for athree-way design by eliminating four outermost legs and a five-waydesign by eliminating two outermost legs. A pigtail 211 is attached toeach leg 210. Pigtail 211 allows a linesperson to easily attach acable-to-cable butt splice to crab joint 200. The legs 210 extendingfrom end 206 and end 204 are electrically connected at a junction plate(not shown) located in intermediate section 208 of housing 200. Alimiter, known in the art, is positioned between leg 210 and thejunction plate. Each pigtail 211 is rated for a current that does notexceed the current rating of the limiter connecting leg 210 to thejunction plate, during normal operation. Further, at least one bus leg212 is included on each end of housing 202, for the purpose ofconnecting to another electrical apparatus, such as another crab joint.Ring bus leg 212 is electrically connected to the junction plate (notshown) located in intermediate section 208 of housing 202. A ring busleg as used throughout this application is generally defined as anon-limitered (i.e., non-fused) connector having a cable to create anelectrical reference point that is designed to balance the load on aparticular joint. A pigtail 211 is also attached to ring bus leg 212 inorder to improve the ease of installing a prepared cable to crab joint200.

The junction plate (not shown), legs 202, and ring bus leg 212 can bemade from a highly conductive material, such as pure copper, and platedwith a material such as tin to resist corrosion.

In the present embodiment, insulated housing 202 consists of an innerhigh-temperature shell, which provides separate arcing chambers for eachleg 210. Therefore, the arching chambers of insulated housing 210confine the resultant electrical arcs and molten material incident froma blown limiter. Additionally, the outer surface of insulated housing202 can be made of various insulating polymers, silicone, EPDM or othersuitable materials known to those of ordinary skill in the art. Theinsulation surface of pigtails 211 can also be made of the samematerials as that of insulated housing 202.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of an end of the improved crab joint 200the present invention. Compared to prior art crab joints referencedherein, such as the embodiment presented in FIG. 1B (PRIOR ART), thearrangement of the present invention reduces the space requirement of acrab joint as indicated by the dash lined 300. This is accomplished bychanging the position of ring bus leg 212 from a central position to aposition that optimizes vertical space. In the present invention, theplurality of legs 210 are arranged in a rectangular configuration. Ringbus leg 212 is positioned at a side of insulated housing 202, in thiscase, the side located nearest to the rack installation once racked.This positioning of the crab joints 200 is further shown in FIG. 4.Specifically, FIG. 4 shows a side view of the crab joint installation214 of FIG. 2, composed of a series of racked crab joints 200. In thepresent figure, the ring bus leg 212 for each crab joint 200 is shownpositioned between the common rack system 216 and the plurality of legs210. Common rack system shelf 402 is also shown for supporting the crabjoints 200 and maintaining the distance between each in a verticalplane.

Next, FIG. 5 is a side view of an exemplary seven-way crab joint of thepresent invention with assembled cable mains and a ring bus legconnected thereto. In the present embodiment the position of legs 210are staggered. The insulated housing 202 is shown with a plurality ofintegrally molded legs 210. In this depiction, the crab joint has sixlegs 210 extending from a first end 204 of insulated housing 202 and sixlegs 210 extending from a second end 206 of housing 200. A pigtail 211is attached to each leg 210. The legs 210 extending are electricallyconnected at a junction plate (not shown) located in intermediatesection 208 of insulated housing 200. Again, the space-savingimprovements are depicted by the dashed line 300.

FIG. 6 depicts a top view of an exemplary embodiment of the presentinvention, further exemplifying the staggered positioning of legs 210.Again, the insulated housing 202 is shown with a plurality of integrallymolded legs 210. In this depiction, crab joint 200 has six legs 210extending from a first end 204 of insulated housing 202 and six legs 210extending from a second end 206 of housing 200. A pigtail 211 isattached to each leg 210. The legs 210 extending are electricallyconnected at a junction plate (not shown) located in intermediatesection 208 of housing 200. Ring bus leg 212 is positioned at the sideof crab joint 200 which is designed to be positioned closest to a rackstructure (not shown) in a mounted assembly.

Turning next to FIG. 7, depicted is a front view of the a crab jointinstallation 214, composed of a series of racked crab joints 200 placedin a vertical arrangement as generally depicted in FIG. 2. The crabjoint installation 214 is depicted in a common rack system 216 which isgenerally utilized in an underground installation. The intermediatesection 208 of the crab joint 200 rests on and can be secured to shelf402 of the common rack system. Shelf 402 can be positioned toaccommodate the reduced size of crab joint 200. Three seven-way crabjoints 200 are shown allowing for the installation of a plurality ofring bus legs and standard legs. Pigtails 211 are further shown attachedto the various legs. Due to the compact configuration of crab joints200, rack space is optimized in the vertical direction allowing for theinclusion of multiple additional crab joints in a space reserved for farfewer prior art crab joints.

FIG. 8A and FIG. 8B are designed to visually depict the improvement overthe existing art by providing a cut-away view of the various componentsutilized to construct an existing crab joint (FIG. 8A) and thelow-profile crab joint (FIG. 8B) claimed in the present invention. Theinsulating housing of the existing crab joint 800 (FIG. 8A) is comprisedof a top portion 802, bottom portion 804, left portion 806 composed oftwo units, and a right portion 808 composed of two units. Each of theaforementioned components of the insulating housing is designed tosecure the junction plate 810 therewithin in the intermediate assemblyof the constructed insulation housing. As previously mentioned, thejunction plate 810 is made from a highly conductive material, such aspure copper, and plated with a material such as tin to resist corrosion,and is designed to serve as a conduction and connection point for theplurality of standard legs 812. In addition, the ring bus leg 814 iselectronically connected to the junction plate 810 at a position centralto the standard leg assembly. While the improved crab joint 820 of thepresent invention, as depicted in FIG. 8B, accomplishes the sameobjectives of the known crab joint 800 depicted in FIG. 8B, theimprovements in the positioning of the legs and construction of theinsulated housing results in a design which is clearly more compact andutilizes less material in its construction than known designs. ComparingFIG. 8A and FIG. 8B, which are presented roughly to scale to each other,one of ordinary skill in the art will readily recognize that by removingthe bus leg 834 from the central portion of the junction plate 830 (andmaking other modifications as disclosed in more detail herein), animproved design is achieved which departs significantly from designsknown in the art. Like the known crab joint 800 depicted in FIG. 8A, thelow profile crab joint 820 of the present invention as depicted in FIG.8B includes an insulating housing comprised of a top portion 822, bottomportion 824, left portion 826, and a right portion 828. While the priorart crab joint must utilize two units to form the left portion and twounits to form the right portion to allow for the legs to be securedtherewithin, the design of the present invention accomplishes the sameobjective by utilizing a single unit for each portion (or in someinstances a single unit fused from one or more units). This is asignificant improvement over the existing art as it results in the useof less material for the manufacture and of course reduces themanufacturing requirements by limiting the number of portions which mustbe manufactured. Further, while each design depicted in FIG. 8A and FIG.8B includes the same number of standard legs 812 (FIG. 8A), 832 (FIG.8B), the connection elements of standard legs 832, are designed at anangle departing from vertical so as to allow for a more compact positionof the outer legs. Such positioning of the connection elements furtherfacilitates the compact design of the present invention.

The improvements discussed in the present detailed description,including those addressed in the comparison of FIG. 8A in light of FIG.8B, are further evident in FIG. 9A and FIG. 9B. By removing the ring busleg 902 (FIG. 9A) from the central position to the position of ring busleg 912 (FIG. 9B), the overall vertical dimension of known crab joint900 is substantially reduced as evidenced in the crab joint 910 of thepresent invention. In one exemplary embodiment of the present invention,this repositioning of the ring bus legs (along with the otherimprovements disclosed herein with respect to the present design)results in over a thirty percent reduction in the overall dimension.Specifically, in one known exemplary embodiment, the overall verticaldimension of the crab joint is 5.875 inches, and in an exemplaryembodiment of the improved design of the crab joint, the overallvertical dimension is less than 4.066 inches. It is also evident in thefigures that such positioning of the ring bus leg 902 (FIG. 9A) at acentral position in the known crab joint 900 to the positioning of thering bus leg 912 (FIG. 9B) at an outer position in the improved crabjoint also allows for the reduction of insulating material within theinsulating housing 904 (FIG. 9A) as compared to the insulating housing914 (FIG. 9B) and further allows for closer positioning of the standardlegs 906 (FIG. 9A) of the known crab joint 900 and the standard legs 916(FIG. 9B) of the improved crab joint 910 of the present invention.

The compact nature and improvements of the present invention are mostapparent in FIG. 10A as compared to FIG. 10B which depicts known crabjoints 1000 (FIG. 10A) in a racked environment as compared to theimproved crab joints 1010 (FIG. 10B) in a racked environment. Likeseveral of the prior figures, FIG. 10A and FIG. 10B are show in relevantscale to each other. Substantial vertical height reduction is achieved,in one exemplary embodiment by approximately thirty percent, byrepositioning the ring bus leg 1002 (FIG. 10A) of known crab joints 1000(FIG. 10A) from a central position to the position of ring bus leg 1012(FIG. 10B) of improved crab joints 1010 (FIG. 10B) to a rack-sideposition and making the other improvements as disclosed herein. One ofordinary skill in the art will readily recognize that such improvements,at least in this particular example, result in the ability to include afourth crab joint in the space previously occupied by only three crabjoints.

Thus, there has been summarized and outlined, generally in broad form, aplurality of the most important features of the present invention. Whilethis summary is presented so that the novelty of the presentcontribution to the related art may be better appreciated, it willfurther be apparent that additional features of the invention describedhereinafter (which will form the subject matter of the claims appendedhereto) will further define the scope, novelty, and in certain instancesthe improvements upon any existing art. The following descriptionprovides specific details for a thorough understanding of, and enablingdescription for, various examples of the technology. One skilled in theart will understand that the technology may be practiced without many ofthese details and it is to be readily understood that the inventionpresented herein is not limited in its application to the details ofconstruction, namely the seven leg configuration, and to thearrangements of the components set forth in the foregoing description orillustrated in the various figures integrated and categorized herein.For example, in some instances, well-known structures and functions havenot been shown or described in detail to avoid unnecessarily obscuringthe description of the examples of the technology. It is intended thatthe terminology used in the description presented below be interpretedin its broadest reasonable manner, even though it is being used inconjunction with a detailed description of certain examples of thetechnology. Although certain terms may be emphasized below, anyterminology intended to be interpreted in any restricted manner will beovertly and specifically defined as such in this Detailed Descriptionsection. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the disclosure ofthe present invention may readily be utilized as a basis for thedesigning of other similar structures, methods and systems for carryingout the various purposes and objectives of the present invention. Thus,the claims as set forth shall allow for such equivalent constructionsinsofar as they do not depart from the spirit and scope of the presentinvention as described herein.

We claim:
 1. A method of establishing an electrical connectioncomprising the steps of: connecting a plurality of cable mains in arectangular configuration to a cable joint assembly; and connecting abus connection to the cable joint assembly at a location substantiallyadjacent to the rectangular connection.
 2. The method of establishing anelectrical connection of claim 1, wherein the plurality of cable mainsand the bus connection are connected to the cable joint assembly via acompression connection.